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ASTR120/121 COURSE REDESIGN
Derek C. Richardson (Prof.), Sara Frederick (Discussion TA), Joe DeMartini (Lab TA) with Melissa Hayes-Gehrke, Alice Olmstead, Fatima Abdurrahman, Allison Bostrom, Emily Garhart, Sarah Scott, and Holly Sheets
Innovations in Teaching and Learning Conference, Apr 29, 2016
“Engaged Students = Successful Students”
ASTR120/121—Quick Facts • Required 2-semester intro course for Astronomy majors. • 40–50 students per semester. • ASTR121 has a lab component.
• In Fall 2014 we received an Elevate Fellows grant from the TLTC to help transform the course.
Outcomes for this Panel/Roundtable Participants will… … assess what aspects of course redesign are most
important to their own goals;
… identify at least one aspect of our course redesign that they may use in their own redesign.
Introductions • Please take 1–2 minutes to introduce yourselves!
• Name, course, and what interests you about redesign.
• Panelists will now take 1–2 minutes to describe: 1. their role in the ASTR120/121 course redesign; 2. how they got involved in the ASTR120/121 course redesign; 3. a personal experience that showed students were engaged.
Motivation for Making Changes Ø Diversity of student backgrounds and learning styles. Ø Later courses reported insufficient student preparation. Ø Discussion did not advance course objectives. Ø Fragmented and unfocused ASTR121 lab.
Lecture Transformation Ideas Ø Align content and assessments with learning outcomes. Ø Add active learning elements to lectures, with feedback. Ø Reduce stereotype threat with two-stage exams. Ø Reflect on what works and what doesn’t.
Reflection
Support Funds
Equity Strategies
Engagement Strategy
Learning Strategy
Outcomes Strategy
Lecture Learning Goals
Content & Assessment Alignment
Think-Pair-Share Peer Instruction
Whiteboards
Two-Stage Exams
Course Reflection Logs
Videos of Math Derivations
Assigned Reading with Muddiest Point
Surveys
Discussion Focused on Learning Goals
Faded Scaffolding for Lab Reports
Lab Peer Review
Self-Assessments
Funding for LAs/TAs Weekly Group
Meetings
Course Learning Goals
Course Materials
Self-Guided Labs
Group Work in Discussion
Minimize Student Cost
Slides available at ter.ps/astr121lab
Reflection • Please take a few minutes to write down at least one new
idea that came to you during this discussion, and share.
• Slides from today’s discussion are here: ter.ps/astr121lab
Supporting Content
Group Engagement: Whiteboards
Try it yourself! Break into groups, and collaboratively do the following…
Sketch your place in the universe!
Group Engagement: Whiteboards
Peer Instruction (Think-Pair-Share) Ø Get instant feedback. Ø Give students time to
consider their answer before voting.
Ø Have students talk it out in groups if no consensus.
Ø Vote again. Repeat as needed!
Ø Voting cards are a less expensive option for students.
A BC D
Try it yourself! The Moon appears to have different shapes in the sky, called “phases.” The cause of these phases is: 1. The Moon physically changes shape
as it orbits the Earth. 2. The Earth casts a shadow on the
Moon, causing phases. 3. We see different parts of the Moon
illuminated as it orbits the Earth. 4. More than one of the above. 5. None of the above.
Full moon rising in the east.
Crescent moon setting in the west.
Visualization
Lecture Learning Goals • In addition to course goals, have ~3 goals per lecture. • Learning goals should be reasonably high level (not just
memorization) and must be assessable. • Our group typically iterated on each learning goal.
…explain how planetary interiors gain and lose heat, and how this is related to geological activity, including the presence or absence of magnetic fields;
…predict the interior structure and geological activity of a terrestrial planet, and whether the planet has a magnetic field, based on the planet’s size, spin, distance from its star, and age;
Proposed…
Revised…
Two-stage Exams (Retests) Ø Designed to reduce exam stress/stereotype threat. Ø After each midterm, students take a copy with them. Ø Students may work together, use notes, textbooks, etc. Ø Hand in the retest 1 week later for grading. Ø Only zero, half, or full marks for retest questions. Ø Midterm score is average of original and retest, if higher. Ø Final exam augmented by best retest improvement.
Other Elements Ø Videos of math
derivations. Ø Muddiest point
surveys based on assigned reading.
Ø Lecture-Tutorials in discussion.
“I still don't understand all the details of the higher temperature phase transitions. For example, how does a high temperature ionize an atom?”
Example Discussion Activities
Sketch the Milky Way Student-Led Review
“I understand that most galaxies tend to be red-shifted because the universe is expanding but does that mean we are near the epicenter of said expansion if most of the galaxies are moving away from us?” “How exactly does the cosmic distance ladder work? We understand individual components of it, but are still confused as to how they fit together.” “Why are active galactic nuclei in the local universe not as energetic as quasars, and how do we know this?”
In Your Own Words: Spiral Density Waves “Think of the spiral arms of the Milky Way as waves moving through gas instead of water. Within the wave itself, gas becomes bunched up and closer together, which leads to more gas clouds collapsing under their own gravity, which leads to more star formation. So as the spiral arms move through the gas of the Milky Way, the gas will always be more concentrated within them, explaining why the most star formation takes place in these regions.”
In Your Own Words: Temporal Variability 1 “If someone was messaging you in Morse code, which takes a while to type out, and they had almost reached the end of the message when someone else started sending a new message, and your machine, for a while, had two messages overlapping. This is what would happen if an object varied in apparent brightness, because light can take a while to travel, just like it takes a while to send a message in Morse code.”
In Your Own Words: Temporal Variability 2 “Think of varying brightness as switching a light on and off. If you have a large area, like the center of a galaxy, then the light from the far end of the galaxy can take much longer to reach us than the light from the close end. If you switch off both lights, the light from the far end trails behind the light from the close end by their distance divided by the speed of light.”
ASTR121 Lab Ø Focus on fundamental topics. Ø Give guidance, not cookbook instructions. Ø Connect to current research with pre-lab reading. Ø Consistent use of MATLAB throughout. Ø Faded-scaffolding for lab reports, with detailed rubric. Ø Students work in pairs, engage in peer review.
Ø Modified E-CLASS survey (Zwickl+13) shows students’ expectations of what is important to experts are aligned with assessments.
15. “Working in a group is an important part of doing astronomy experiments.”
Reflection • With all these changes, it is important to reflect each
lecture (and discussion) on what worked and what didn’t. • We use shared google docs to write out these reflections
and comment on them, 1 for lecture, 1 for discussion. • Very useful for adjusting approach as you go, and for
making changes the next time you teach the course. • Other self-assessment includes “stop-go-change” mid-
semester student survey, and the usual course evaluation. • We also used certain research-based assessments.
How we used Elevate funds. Ø Hired a learning assistant (LA) each semester. Ø Paid for part of Alice’s time (one semester). Ø Covered conference registrations (AAPT). Ø Bought supplies (whiteboards, erasers, pens).
EXTRA SLIDES
Timeline of Changes • Fall 2014:
• Think-pair-share in lecture with voting cards. • Augmented Lecture-Tutorials in discussion. • Retests. • Elevate Fellows funding application.
• Spring 2015: • ASTR121 lab transformation with LA support. • Elevate Fellows activities/planning.
• Fall 2015: • Learning outcomes with aligned assessments, cumulative exams. • Whiteboards, in-class quizzes, videos, muddiest point, reflections. • MasteringAstronomy for guiding student reading.
ASTR120 (Solar System) Outcomes Ø Develop an appreciation for our place in the universe. Ø Convey the current state of knowledge regarding basic
astronomy, our solar system, and extrasolar planets to a non-specialist.
Ø Solve complex problems requiring application of multiple astrophysical concepts.
Ø Collaborate with others to develop shared knowledge. Ø Write scientifically and communicate your results
effectively. Ø Critically evaluate your own and your peers' work.
Try it yourself! In 2006, professional astronomers voted to “demote” Pluto from planet to “dwarf planet.” This was because: 1. Pluto is too small to be a planet. 2. Pluto is not round enough to be a
planet. 3. There are other (but smaller) objects
like Pluto at a similar distance from the Sun.
4. More than one of the above. 5. None of the above.
Pluto
Teaching the Skills of Professional Astronomy through Collaborative Introductory Labs
Derek Richardson, Fatima Abdurrahman, Alice
Olmstead, Sarah Scott, Melissa Hayes-‐Gehrke
University of Maryland, College Park
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 29
Fatima Abdurrahman
Sarah Scott
Alice
Olmstead
Introductory Astrophysics
• ASTR120 & ASTR121 (with lab).
– Two-‐semester sequence for science majors.
• Students taking the lab should:
1. Experience astronomy through practical exercises.
2. Develop skills needed for professional astronomy,
e.g., collaboration, data analysis, critical thinking.
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 30
Transforming the Lab
1. Focus on fundamental topics (6 labs, not 10).
2. Think about the approach (freedom to explore).
3. Connect to current research (prelab reading).
4. Write comprehensive reports (formal sections).
5. Collaborate & critique (group work).
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 31
1. Focus on Fundamental Topics
• Just six labs: 1. Intro to MATLAB.
2. Stellar Parallax.
3. Blackbody and Stellar Spectra.
4. Cluster H-‐R Diagrams.
5. HI Rotation Curves.
6. Hubble’s Law.
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 32
Each lab spans 2 weeks (4 hours in-‐lab time). 1 ugrad LA per section (20 students per LA). 2 sections.
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 33
2. Think About the Approach
“For each pair of images, you will
determine the plate scale s and the
apparent separation a of a star
between the two images.”
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 34
“What real systems can be
represented by each of these
rotation curves?”
• Lab manual gives broad
instructions. It’s not a
cookbook.
• Questions provide
students opportunities
to reflect on their work.
3. Connect to Current Research
• Required pre-‐lab assignment to read a
related “astrobites”
article and answer a
few questions.
– http://astrobites.org/
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 35
4. Write Comprehensive Reports
• We use faded scaffolding:
– Students provided with a template for each lab
report, with some (mostly) filled-‐out sections.
– Each new lab has fewer pre-‐filled report sections.
– The last lab report has no pre-‐filled sections at all.
• Graded using a detailed rubric. 7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 36
5. Collaborate & Critique
• Students work in pairs.
• Whole class encouraged to cooperate.
• At the start of the second week of each lab,
pairs exchange draft lab reports for comment.
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 37
Evaluating Our Success
• Modified E-‐CLASS survey
(Zwickl+13) shows students’
expectations of what is
important to experts are
aligned with assessments.
1214
9
13
11
8 1
2
18 10
5 46
15
16
17
3
7
-0.4
-0.3
-0.2
-0.1
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
Ch
ange
in f
ract
ion
of
clas
s w
ith
exp
ert
-lik
e re
spo
nse
s
Mean importance for earning a good grade
Unimportant Very Important
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 38
Group Work
15. “Working in a group is an important part of doing astronomy experiments.”
More expert-‐like response.
Important for good grade.
Summary
• We have transformed the UMD ASTR121 lab to make it more
collaborative and relevant for students.
• Student views on astronomy labs became more expert-‐like.
• Will continue to refine the improvements this year (spring 2016).
• Materials available online (plus teaching manual): ter.ps/astr121lab
• We thank the UMD TLTC Elevate program for support.
• Related poster: PST2A07 (yesterday, sorry!).
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 39
Extra Slides
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 40
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 41
Excerpt from Lab 4 (Cluster H-‐R Diagrams)
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 42
Excerpt from Lab 5 (HI Rotation Curves)
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 43
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 44
Modified E-‐CLASS Survey Results (Part 1)
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 45
Modified E-‐CLASS Survey Results (Part 2)
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 46
Modified E-‐CLASS Survey Question Key
Lab Facility
• 10 PCs for 40 students in 2 sections.
• Students work in pairs.
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 47
Classroom Capacity 50 students. Pretty crowded!
7/29/15 AAPT Summer Meeting 2015 48